Milkmen go on strike
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, October 26 2013 :
Aggrieved by the concerned authority's failure to look into their demands, members of All Manipur Milk Producers and Suppliers Association have launched an unusual agitation of cutting milk supply and spilling milk before Government offices.
Launching their unusual agitation, members of the association spilled several cans of milk in front of the Manipur Milk Producers Co-operative Union Limited this afternoon.
They also staged a similar agitation at the gate of Veterinary and Animal Husbandry Department.
they spilled cans of milk at the office of Registrar, Cooperation Department, Lamphelpat.
Meanwhile, the Cooperative Department Non-Gazetted Employees' Association has condemned the act of spilling milk at the office of the Registrar.
A press release issued by the association called upon all concerned not to repeat such awkward activities in future.
Talking about the ongoing agitation, one Sorokhaibam Chaoba, a cattle farmer of Hiyanglam Hiranmei said that the situation deteriorated to such ugly stage of because of the failure of the Manipur Milk Producers' Cooperative Union Limited to their grievances and complaints.
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Cattle feed are not provided in time nor did they pay any heed to the appeal to hike price of milk.
At present, the union collects milk from farmers at Rs 23 per litre and they are selling milk at a higher price after adding their profit margin.
On the other hand, even as a new Chairman of the Union's Board of Directors and office bearers have been elected, the new office bearers still remain defunct for the preceding office bearers have not relinquished their respective duties and responsibilities, Chaoba said.
Until the new Chairman and office bearers are given their respective powers and other demands of the association are fulfilled, farmers would not give any milk to the Union.
A number of cooperative societies are affiliated to the union and 37 cooperative societies are in support of the ongoing agitation of stalling milk supply, Chaoba claimed.
All Manipur Milk Producers and Suppliers Association advisor P Gyaneshore said that members of the Union are craving for the 100 per cent grant-in-aid of Rs 10.97 crore given by the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries, Ministry of Agriculture for Intensive Dairy Development Programme (IDDP) .
Under IDDP, cattle farmers should be advance money, working capital, free medicine, subsidised concentrated cattle feed and head load charge for transporting milk.
The programme has also provision for installing bulk milk cooler.
With the Union's officer bearers concentrating all their attention on the money given for the central sponsored scheme, cattle farmers are enduring severe difficulties, Gyaneshore said.